United Kingdom in the Eurovision Song Contest 2011

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Eurovision Song Contest 2011
CountryFlag of the United Kingdom.svg  United Kingdom
National selection
Selection processInternal selection
Selection date(s)Artist: 29 January 2011
Song: 11 March 2011
Selected entrant Blue
Selected song"I Can"
Selected songwriter(s)
Finals performance
Final result11th, 100 points
United Kingdom in the Eurovision Song Contest
◄2010 •2011• 2012►

The United Kingdom participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2011 with the song "I Can" written by Duncan James, Lee Ryan, Ciaron Bell, Ben Collier, Ian Hope, Liam Keenan and StarSign. The song was performed by the group Blue, which was internally selected by the British broadcaster BBC to represent the United Kingdom at the 2011 contest in Düsseldorf, Germany. Blue was announced as the British entrant on 29 January 2011, while the song "I Can" was presented to the public on 11 March 2011.

Contents

As a member of the "Big Five", the United Kingdom automatically qualified to compete in the final of the Eurovision Song Contest. Performing in position 14, the United Kingdom placed 11th out of the 25 participating countries with 100 points.

Background

Prior to the 2011 contest, the United Kingdom has participated in the Eurovision Song Contest fifty-three times. [1] Thus far, the United Kingdom has won the contest five times: in 1967 with the song "Puppet on a String" performed by Sandie Shaw, in 1969 with the song "Boom Bang-a-Bang" performed by Lulu, in 1976 with the song "Save Your Kisses for Me" performed by Brotherhood of Man, in 1981 with the song "Making Your Mind Up" performed by Bucks Fizz and in 1997 with the song "Love Shine a Light" performed by Katrina and the Waves. To this point, the nation is noted for having finished as the runner-up in a record fifteen contests. Up to and including 1998, the UK had only twice finished outside the top 10, in 1978 and 1987. Since 1999, the year in which the rule was abandoned that songs must be performed in one of the official languages of the country participating, the UK has had less success, thus far only finishing within the top ten twice: in 2002 with the song "Come Back" performed by Jessica Garlick and in 2009 with the song "It's My Time" performed by Jade Ewen. For the 2010 contest, the United Kingdom finished in twenty-fifth place (last) out of twenty-five competing entries with the song "That Sounds Good to Me" performed by Josh Dubovie.

The British national broadcaster, BBC, broadcasts the event within the United Kingdom and organises the selection process for the nation's entry. BBC announced that the United Kingdom would participate in the Eurovision Song Contest 2011 on 20 December 2011. [2] BBC has traditionally organised a national final featuring a competition among several artists and songs to choose the British entry for Eurovision. For their 2011 entry, BBC announced that they would opt to internally select the British entry due to poor results and decreasing public interest after a record low viewing figures had been achieved for the 2010 contest. [3] This marked the first time that an internal selection would take place to select United Kingdom's entry since their first entry in 1957. [4] [5]

Before Eurovision

Internal selection

Blue was internally selected to represent the United Kingdom in the Eurovision Song Contest 2011 Blue 4.jpg
Blue was internally selected to represent the United Kingdom in the Eurovision Song Contest 2011

On 29 January 2011, the group Blue was revealed as the British entrant for the Eurovision Song Contest 2011. [6] [7] Among the group members were Antony Costa who previously attempted to represent the United Kingdom at the 2006 Eurovision Song Contest, placing second in the national final Eurovision: Making Your Mind Up with the song "It's a Beautiful Thing", and Duncan James who had previously been the British spokesperson at the Eurovision Song Contest 2009, revealing the results of the British vote. [8] Prior to the announcement of Blue as the British representative, artists that were rumoured included singers Charlotte Church, Katherine Jenkins and Pixie Lott, the duo Hurts, actress Margi Clarke and Big Brother 2004 winner Nadia Almada, while singer-songwriter Mika was reported in July 2010 to be in talks with the BBC to write the British entry. [9] [10] [11] [12]

On 10 March 2011, the song "I Can" written by members of Blue Duncan James and Lee Ryan together with Ciaron Bell, Ben Collier, Ian Hope, Liam Keenan and StarSign was previewed and presented during a press conference, and was presented to the public on 11 March 2011 during the BBC One programme The Graham Norton Show , hosted by Graham Norton. [13]

Criticism

BBC's selection of Blue as the British representatives for the 2011 Eurovision Song Contest received criticism from British media. Matt Williams of The Independent referred the group as a "nineties boy band", while Neil McCormick of The Daily Telegraph labelled the group's selection as "boardroom meetings and internal discussions involving unspecified members of the BBC hierarchy, imposing both a band and a song on the British public" and "high handed Auntie-knows-best arrogance allied [...] to the pop instincts of out-of-touch bureaucrats". [14] [15] Criticism was also made by Blue's former manager Daniel Glatman who described the group's decision to compete in Eurovision "reckless insanity", and by previously rumoured act Hurts which revealed that they had instead submitted their song to the Russian broadcaster "in light of the recent dark and depressing Eurovision news from the UK". [16] [17] Blue subsequently stated that their Eurovision participation would serve as an international springboard for the group's reunion, pledging people to wait until the song release. [18] [19]

Blue's contest entry was also met with criticism, including from television presenter Phillip Schofield who called it "a shocking song". The group responded to Schofield by calling his comments "upsetting" and "hurtful" as well as accusing him of seeking publicity from being overshadowed by Jason Gardiner on Dancing on Ice . Television presenter and Loose Women panellist Denise Welch also responded to Schofield in defense of the group, stating that the British public should support their act regardless of the song. [20] [21] Prior to the contest, group member Simon Webbe expressed his dissatisfaction with the lack of domestic support for "I Can" with few radio stations, including BBC stations, play-listing the song. A BBC spokesman later stated that their entry would be considered later on merit. [22]

Preparation

The first version of the official music video of "I Can", filmed on top of a building in London, was released on 12 March 2011 in order to promote the special BBC One documentary Eurovision: Your Country Needs Blue . [23] The official version of the music video was released by the BBC on 14 April 2011. [24]

Promotion

Blue made several appearances across Europe to specifically promote "I Can" as the British Eurovision entry. On 12 February, Blue performed during the final of the Maltese Eurovision national final. [25] [26] On 18 February, Blue performed during the final of the Spanish Eurovision national final. [27] On 26 March, Blue performed "I Can" in Italy during the Top of the Pops Italy . [28] On 9 April, Blue performed during the Eurovision in Concert event which was held at the Club Air venue in Amsterdam, Netherlands and hosted by Cornald Maas, Esther Hart and Sascha Korf. [29] On 22 April, Blue performed in Ireland during The Late Late Show on RTÉ One. [30] On 24 April, Blue performed at a concert held at the Independence Square in Kyiv, Ukraine, as well as during Tantsi z zirkamy , the Ukrainian version of Dancing with the Stars on commercial broadcaster STB. [31] [32] The band also took part in promotional activities in Azerbaijan. [33]

In addition to their international appearances, on 16 April, Blue were featured on the documentary Eurovision: Your Country Needs Blue, which covered the preparations of the band and featured advice from singers Robbie Williams, JLS, John Barrowman, Robin Gibb of the Bee Gees, composer David Arnold, choreographer Arlene Phillips, and former British representatives Cliff Richard and Lulu. [34] [35] [36] On 17 March, Blue appeared during the BBC Red Nose Day telethon in order to raise money for the appeal. [37] The band also appeared nude in British gay monthly magazine Attitude as part of their naked issue in April, taking the cover spot as well as a feature article in the magazine. [38] On 29 April, Blue performed during the ITV programme Paul O'Grady Live and on 30 April during the dance competition So You Think You Can Dance . [39] [40] Blue completed promotional activities where they performed during the ITV chat show Loose Women and the BBC children's show Blue Peter on 3 May. [41]

At Eurovision

According to Eurovision rules, all nations with the exceptions of the host country and the "Big Five" (France, Germany, Italy, Spain and the United Kingdom) are required to compete in one of two semi-finals, and qualify in order to participate in the final; the top ten countries from each semi-final progress to the final. As a member of the "Big 5", the United Kingdom automatically qualified to compete in the final on 14 May 2011. [42] In addition to their participation in the final, the United Kingdom is also required to broadcast and vote in one of the two semi-finals. [43] During the semi-final allocation draw on 17 January 2011, the United Kingdom was assigned to broadcast and vote in the first semi-final on 10 May 2011.

In the United Kingdom, the semi-finals were broadcast on BBC Three and BBC HD with commentary by Scott Mills in London and Sara Cox, who interviewed guests live from the arena. The final was televised on BBC One and BBC One HD with commentary by Graham Norton and broadcast on BBC Radio 2 with commentary by Ken Bruce. The British spokesperson, who announced the British votes during the final, was Alex Jones. [44]

Final

Blue performing during the final United Kingdom at ESC 2011.jpg
Blue performing during the final

Blue took part in technical rehearsals on 7 and 8 May, followed by dress rehearsals on 13 and 14 May. This included the jury final on 13 May where the professional juries of each country watched and voted on the competing entries. During the running order draw on 15 March which determined the running order of the British entry in the final, United Kingdom was drawn to perform in position 14, following the entry from Switzerland and before the entry from Moldova. [45] [46] On the day of the final, the United Kingdom was considered by bookmakers to be the fourth most likely country to win the competition. [47]

The British performance featured the members of Blue, dressed in blue outfits, performing a choreographed dance routine on a predominately blue and green coloured stage which featured four small LED screens displaying images of the band members, the letters "I CAN" as well as other images such as rain and green lightning. [48] The band was joined by two male backing vocalists, Bryan Chambers and Daniel Thomas, dressed in black outfits. [49] The main LED screens displayed abstract images in shades of green that alternate during the performance, which also featured pyrotechnic effects. [50] [51] The United Kingdom placed eleventh in the final, scoring 100 points. [52] [53]

Voting

Voting during the three shows involved each country awarding points from 1–8, 10 and 12 as determined by a combination of 50% national jury and 50% televoting. Each nation's jury consisted of five music industry professionals who are citizens of the country they represent. This jury judged each entry based on: vocal capacity; the stage performance; the song's composition and originality; and the overall impression by the act. In addition, no member of a national jury was permitted to be related in any way to any of the competing acts in such a way that they cannot vote impartially and independently.

Following the release of the full split voting by the EBU after the conclusion of the competition, it was revealed that the United Kingdom had placed fifth with the public televote and twenty-second with the jury vote. In the public vote, the United Kingdom scored 166 points and in the jury vote the nation scored 57 points. [54]

Below is a breakdown of points awarded to the United Kingdom and awarded by United Kingdom in the first semi-final and grand final of the contest. The nation awarded its 12 points to Lithuania in the semi-final and to Ireland in the final of the contest.

Points awarded to the United Kingdom

Points awarded to the United Kingdom (Final) [55]
ScoreCountry
12 pointsFlag of Bulgaria.svg  Bulgaria
10 pointsFlag of Italy.svg  Italy
8 points
7 pointsFlag of Malta.svg  Malta
6 points
5 points
4 points
3 points
2 points
1 point

Points awarded by the United Kingdom

Detailed voting results

Detailed voting results from the United Kingdom (Semi-Final 1) [57]
DrawCountryResultsPoints
JuryTelevotingCombined
01Flag of Poland.svg  Poland 885
02Flag of Norway.svg  Norway 314
03Flag of Albania.svg  Albania 22
04Flag of Armenia.svg  Armenia
05Flag of Turkey.svg  Turkey 441
06Flag of Serbia.svg  Serbia 44
07Flag of Russia.svg  Russia
08Flag of Switzerland (Pantone).svg   Switzerland 552
09Flag of Georgia.svg  Georgia 22
10Flag of Finland.svg  Finland 83116
11Flag of Malta.svg  Malta 11
12Flag of San Marino (1862-2011).svg  San Marino
13Flag of Croatia.svg  Croatia
14Flag of Iceland.svg  Iceland 66127
15Flag of Hungary.svg  Hungary 1071710
16Flag of Portugal.svg  Portugal 553
17Flag of Lithuania.svg  Lithuania 12102212
18Flag of Azerbaijan.svg  Azerbaijan 774
19Flag of Greece.svg  Greece 12128
Detailed voting results from the United Kingdom (Final) [57]
DrawCountryResultsPoints
JuryTelevotingCombined
01Flag of Finland.svg  Finland
02Flag of Bosnia and Herzegovina.svg  Bosnia and Herzegovina
03Flag of Denmark.svg  Denmark 6395
04Flag of Lithuania.svg  Lithuania 2796
05Flag of Hungary.svg  Hungary 22
06Flag of Ireland.svg  Ireland 8122012
07Flag of Sweden.svg  Sweden 3583
08Flag of Estonia.svg  Estonia
09Flag of Greece.svg  Greece 44
10Flag of Russia.svg  Russia
11Flag of France.svg  France
12Flag of Italy.svg  Italy 10107
13Flag of Switzerland (Pantone).svg   Switzerland 121210
14Flag of the United Kingdom.svg  United Kingdom
15Flag of Moldova.svg  Moldova 10108
16Flag of Germany.svg  Germany 11
17Flag of Romania.svg  Romania
18Flag of Austria.svg  Austria 772
19Flag of Azerbaijan.svg  Azerbaijan 11
20Flag of Slovenia.svg  Slovenia
21Flag of Iceland.svg  Iceland 884
22Flag of Spain.svg  Spain 661
23Flag of Ukraine.svg  Ukraine
24Flag of Serbia.svg  Serbia 55
25Flag of Georgia.svg  Georgia 44

After Eurovision

The final of the Eurovision Song Contest 2011 was watched by an average of 9.54 million viewers in the United Kingdom with a market share of 40.4%, more than double the previous year and making it the most watched Eurovision Song Contest final since 1999. [58] [59] After the contest, "I Can" entered the top ten iTunes download charts in several European countries. [60]

Related Research Articles

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The United Kingdom participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2009 with the song "It's My Time" written by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Diane Warren. The song was performed by Jade Ewen. The British entry for the 2009 contest in Moscow, Russia was selected via the national final Eurovision: Your Country Needs You, organised by the British broadcaster BBC. Six acts competed in the national final which consisted of two heats, a semi-final and a final, during which the winner was selected entirely through a public televote.

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Iceland participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2011 with the song "Coming Home" written by Sigurjón Brink and Þórunn Erna Clausen. The song was performed by the tribute band Sjonni's Friends. Among the band members was Gunnar Ólason who previously represented Iceland in the Eurovision Song Contest 2001 as part of the duo Two Tricky, where they placed twenty-second in the competition with the song "Angel". The Icelandic entry for the 2011 contest in Düsseldorf, Germany was selected through the national final Söngvakeppni Sjónvarpsins 2011, organised by the Icelandic broadcaster Ríkisútvarpið (RÚV). The selection consisted of three semi-finals and a final, held on 15 January, 22 January, 29 January and 12 February 2011, respectively. Five songs competed in each semi-final with the top two/three as selected by a public televote advancing to the final. In the final, "Aftur heim" performed by Sigurjón's Friends emerged as the winner exclusively through public televoting. The song was later translated from Icelandic to English for the Eurovision Song Contest and was titled "Coming Home", while the band was renamed as Sjonni's Friends.

Armenia participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2011 with the song "Boom Boom" written by Hayk Hovhannisyan, Hayk Harutyunyan and Sosi Khanikyan. The song was performed by Emmy, who was selected internally by the Armenian broadcaster Public Television of Armenia (AMPTV) to represent Armenia in the 2011 contest in Düsseldorf, Germany. Emmy's selection as the Armenian artist was announced on 11 December 2010, while the song was selected through a national final, which took place on 5 March 2011 where four songs competed. "Boom Boom" was selected as the winning song following the combination of votes from a professional jury and a public televote.

Cyprus participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2011 with the song "San aggelos s'agapisa" written by Andreas Anastasiou and Michalis Antoniou. The song was performed by Christos Mylordos. The Cypriot broadcaster Cyprus Broadcasting Corporation (CyBC) organised the talent show Performance in order to select the Cypriot artist for the 2011 contest in Düsseldorf, Germany. The talent show featured 39 contestants and resulted in the selection of Mylordos as the winning artist at the final on 10 September 2010, where nine contestants remained. The Cypriot song, "San aggelos s'agapisa", was presented to the public on 20 January 2011.

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San Marino participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2011, held in Düsseldorf, Germany. The Sammarinese national broadcaster Radiotelevisione della Repubblica di San Marino (SMRTV) confirmed the country's second participation in the contest on 22 November 2010, marking their return after not participating in 2009 and 2010. Italian singer Senhit Zadik Zadik, under the stage name Senit, was internally selected by SMRTV to represent San Marino with the song "Stand By". The entry was promoted through the creation of a music video, a promotional tour throughout Europe and an interview to the press in the lead up to the Eurovision Song Contest 2011. San Marino performed 12th in the first semi-final, held on 10 May 2011, and placed 16th, receiving 34 points and failing to qualify for the final.

Moldova participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2011 with the song "So Lucky" written by Roman Iagupov, Mihai Gîncu, Andy Shuman and Marc Elsner. The song was performed by the band Zdob şi Zdub. The Moldovan broadcaster TeleRadio-Moldova (TRM) organised the national final O melodie pentru Europa 2011 in order to select the Moldovan entry for the 2011 contest in Düsseldorf, Germany. 98 entries competed to represent Moldova in Düsseldorf, with 25 being shortlisted to participate in the televised national final which took place on 26 February 2011 after auditioning in front of a jury panel. "So Lucky" performed by Zdob şi Zdub emerged as the winner after gaining the most points following the combination of votes from a jury panel and a public televote.

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Georgia participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2011 with the song "One More Day" written by DJ BE$$, DJ Rock and Mikheil Chelidze. The song was performed by the band Eldrine. The Georgian broadcaster Georgian Public Broadcaster (GPB) held a national final in order to select the Georgian entry for the 2011 contest in Düsseldorf, Germany. An open call for submissions was held which resulted in the shortlisting of seven entries that were presented to the public during a televised production on 19 February 2011. The results of a public televote combined with the votes of an expert jury resulted in the selection of "One More Day" performed by Eldrine as the Georgian entry.

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The United Kingdom participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2014 with the song "Children of the Universe" written by Molly Smitten-Downes and Anders Hansson. The song was performed by Molly, who was internally selected by the British broadcaster BBC to represent the United Kingdom at the 2014 contest in Copenhagen, Denmark. Molly and "Children of the Universe" was announced as the British entry in a special presentation show titled The UK Launch broadcast on the BBC Red Button service in March 2014.

Spain participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2015 with the song "Amanecer" written by Tony Sánchez-Ohlsson, Peter Boström and Thomas G:son. The song was performed by Edurne, who was selected by Spanish broadcaster Televisión Española (TVE) to represent the nation at the 2015 contest in Vienna, Austria. Edurne was announced as the Spanish representative on 14 January 2015, while "Amanecer" was presented to the public as the Spanish entry on 1 March 2015.

The United Kingdom participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2015 with the song "Still in Love with You" written by David Mindel and Adrian Bax White. The song was performed by the duo Electro Velvet, which was internally selected by the British broadcaster BBC to represent the United Kingdom at the 2015 contest in Vienna, Austria. Electro Velvet and "Still in Love with You" was announced as the British entry in a special presentation show titled Our Song for Eurovision 2015 broadcast on the BBC Red Button service in March 2015.

The United Kingdom participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2016 with the song "You're Not Alone" written by Matt Schwartz, Justin J. Benson and S. Kanes. The song was performed by Joe and Jake. The British entry for the 2016 contest in Stockholm, Sweden was selected via the national final Eurovision: You Decide, organised by the British broadcaster BBC. Six acts competed in the national final and the winner was selected entirely through a public vote.

The United Kingdom participated in the Eurovision Song Contest 2019 with the song "Bigger than Us" written by Laurell Barker, Anna-Klara Folin, John Lundvik and Jonas Thander. The song was performed by Michael Rice. Songwriter John Lundvik represented Sweden in the Eurovision Song Contest the same year with the song "Too Late for Love". The British entry for the 2019 contest in Tel Aviv, Israel was selected via the national final Eurovision: You Decide, organised by the British broadcaster BBC. Six acts competed in the national final and the winner was selected through two rounds of voting.

References

Kennedy O'Connor, John (2010). The Eurovision Song Contest: The Official History. Carlton Books. ISBN   978-1-84732-521-1.

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  41. ↑ Giles, Luke (29 April 2011). "United Kingdom: Blue make last-minute TV appearances". ESCDaily. Retrieved 1 May 2011.
  42. ↑ "Eurovision Song Contest 2011 Final". European Broadcasting Union . Retrieved 13 May 2011.
  43. ↑ Bakker, Sietse (16 January 2011). "Düsseldorf gets ready for exchange and draw". European Broadcasting Union . Retrieved 16 January 2011.
  44. ↑ "Sara Cox and Scott Mills front Eurovision semi-finals exclusively on BBC Three". BBC. 21 April 2011. Retrieved 1 May 2011.
  45. ↑ Schacht, Andreas (15 March 2011). "Results of the Running Order Draw!". European Broadcasting Union . Retrieved 1 May 2011.
  46. ↑ Lewis, Cole (15 March 2011). "Today: Running Order Announced". ESCToday. Retrieved 1 May 2011.
  47. ↑ Lewis, Cole (14 May 2011). "Who are the favourites?". ESCToday. Retrieved 17 May 2011.
  48. ↑ Eurovision Song Contest Final (14 May 2011). BBC . Retrieved on 16 May 2011.
  49. ↑ "United Kingdom". Six on Stage. Retrieved 13 July 2021.
  50. ↑ "Explosive start for the British boys in Blue". eurovision.tv. 7 May 2011. Retrieved 13 July 2021.
  51. ↑ "Blue show Düsseldorf that they can for the UK". eurovision.tv. 8 May 2011. Retrieved 13 July 2021.
  52. ↑ "Grand Final of Düsseldorf 2011". European Broadcasting Union. Archived from the original on 30 April 2021. Retrieved 30 April 2021.
  53. ↑ Bakker, Sietse (26 May 2011). "EBU reveals split televoting and jury results". European Broadcasting Union. Archived from the original on 28 May 2011. Retrieved 30 April 2021.
  54. ↑ "Eurovision Song Contest 2011 Final". European Broadcasting Union . Retrieved 17 May 2011.
  55. 1 2 "Results of the Grand Final of Düsseldorf 2011". European Broadcasting Union. Archived from the original on 30 April 2021. Retrieved 30 April 2021.
  56. ↑ "Results of the First Semi-Final of Düsseldorf 2011". European Broadcasting Union. Archived from the original on 30 April 2021. Retrieved 30 April 2021.
  57. 1 2 Granger, Anthony (27 May 2011). "United Kingdom Voting Results". Eurovoix. Retrieved 13 March 2024.
  58. ↑ Busa, Alexandru (18 May 2011). "Check out the Eurovision viewing rates". ESCToday. Retrieved 24 May 2011.
  59. ↑ Webb, Glen (16 May 2011). "Ratings success in United Kingdom". European Broadcasting Union . Retrieved 24 May 2011.
  60. ↑ Westbrook, Caroline (16 May 2011). "Eurovision flops Jedward and Blue storm European iTunes charts". Metro . Retrieved 17 May 2011.
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